Meet Our Alumni Regent: Sheldon Engelhorn

Engelhorn graduated from UC San Diego in 1972 with a B.S. in biology. He is a former executive vice president for NOVEX, which he co-founded in 1987 with Richard Chan, a 1974 alumnus of UCSD. In 2000, NOVEX merged with Invitrogen.

For the past 12 years, Engelhorn has served on the UC San Diego Foundation Board of Trustees; chair and advisor to the Student Foundation; the UCSD Alumni Board of Directors as president; the UC San Diego Scholarship Council; and as a member and chair of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography’s Cabinet.

Engelhorn has also been a champion of the community college transfer path to UC San Diego. In 2003, the Engelhorn family created the Engelhorn Family Scholarship Fund for qualified transfer students who complete two years at a community college. “By extending UCSD’s reach to a wider pool of talent, we equip more promising young people for learning and innovation,” said Engelhorn. “Not all the people with the brains, imagination and commitment to solve the world’s problems have the financial resources to attend a school that will cultivate them the way UCSD can.” More than 240 students have benefitted from the Engelhorns’ generosity.

Engelhorn will join the Regents as the university system finds itself increasingly challenged by California’s ability to support UC’s long-term growth needs. In his letter of intent to serve as Regent, he noted “If we want to preserve public support for these institutions in a world of difficult resource-allocation choices, we must make the case that we play a critical role in helping shape a healthy, sustainable future. We have to do a better job of translating our research and curriculum into practical solutions that demonstrably benefit the community.”

About the Alumni Regent

UC alumni regents are selected for two-year terms on a rotating basis from the system's 10 campuses. In the first year, the individual will serve as an alumni regent designate and secretary of the Alumni Association of the University of California (AAUC). He or she will attend all meetings and participate in policy discussions, but without voting rights. In the second year, the regent designate will serve as president of the AAUC and become a full-voting meeting of the Board of Regents. The AAUC officers' primary role is to serve as an alumni representative on the Board of Regents, representing all UC alumni.